


three times Olivia and Jacques saved the Baudelaires, and one time they didn't

by luxxurycar



Category: A Series of Unfortunate Events (TV)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-18
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-10-30 17:51:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 1,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17833292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/luxxurycar/pseuds/luxxurycar
Summary: There are universes where Olivia and Jacques save them. There is one where they don't.





	1. The Penthouse

“Baudelaires,” Olivia calls into the penthouse, raising her voice as much as she can force herself to despite knowing full well that the Squalors and Count Olaf are currently enjoying a lengthy lunch. She hauls herself up over the windowsill, Jacques following her moments later, and nearly falls over her own feet with relief when Violet and Klaus Baudelaire skid into the living room, the latter holding his sister tightly. “Baudelaires,” she says again, tears springing unbidden to her eyes.

“You’re that school librarian,” Klaus says, in the same moment Violet asks Jacques suspiciously, “Who are you?” 

“Jacques Snicket,” Jacques introduces himself cordially, already winding up their climbing rope. They won’t be exiting the penthouse through the window, not with three children. “I’m with the VFD, but there will be more time to explain and answer all of your questions later. For now, we need to get out of here.” He delivers the words with a smile, softening his professional tone. 

Olivia has just barely managed to get her emotions under control when Violet says, “We’ve found the Quagmires. Olaf is keeping them hidden at the bottom of the empty elevator shaft.” Tears spring to her eyes again, though she’s not sure whether they’re due to the sheer relief that courses through her, or because she’s suddenly so furious with that awful,  _ awful _ man that she can barely speak. 

“The Vertical Flame Diversion,  _ of course _ ,” Jacques says, mostly to himself, like he can’t believe he didn’t think of it earlier. Probably he can’t believe it; Olivia thinks he’s used to having all the answers, or getting them quickly when he doesn’t have them. “I’ll climb down and get them,” he holds up the climbing gear. “Olivia, you stay with the Baudelaires. If the Squalors come back early, hide. I’ll find you.” He flashes one of the smiles that Olivia is beginning to suspect are his trademark. 

“I promise you children, we’ll be out of this penthouse before you know it,” Olivia addresses the Baudelaires, desperately wanting to hug them but unsure whether they would welcome her touch. Klaus and Violet share a look, and Olivia’s fierce protectiveness only grows when she recognizes the emotion on their face for what it is:  _ hope. _


	2. The Village

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sort of a continuation of my first "Jacques lives" piece, 'a volunteer walks into a bar', for those that wanted more from that AU.

“Excuse me, but who are you?” The quiet, unfailingly polite question comes from Duncan Quagmire, but when Jacques turns to answer, all five of the children in the back seat look like they desperately want to know the answer. Technically, Duncan was asking Lemony, but Lemony is driving, so Jacques answers for him.

“My brother, Lemony Snicket,” he introduces him. They’re in Lemony’s taxi speeding away from the Village of Fowl Devotees after rescuing two sets of orphans from Count Olaf. Privately, Jacques is certain that he and Lemony wouldn’t have managed to find the Quagmires inside Fowl Fountain in time, but luckily they hadn’t had to. The Baudelaires had freed their friends almost before Jacques could manage to explain that they all needed to leave. He’d worried, in the brief amount of time he’d had to worry between nearly getting killed in the tavern and rushing to find the children, that they might not want to get into the car. He would have understood if they’d refused, but they hadn’t; anything was better than dealing with Count Olaf.

He hopes they’ll all have time to talk about it later. He certainly plans to share as much as he safely can about the VFD with these smart, talented children, both because they’ve come so far looking for answers, and because it just feels like the right thing to do. 

“Where are we going, Mr. Snicket?” This new quiet, unfailingly polite question comes from Violet Baudelaire, who’s holding her sister Sunny securely on her lap and doing her best to hide her worries from her friends and siblings.

“Call me Jacques,” he responds out of habit. Lemony glances at him, only barely so as not to take his eyes off the road, but Jacques is pretty sure he sees a flash of a smile on his brother’s face. “Caligari Carnival,” he answers her question. “We have a few other loose ends to tie up before we can get somewhere safe.” He hopes they’ll understand that it’s necessary to stop at the carnival, that they won’t resent not rushing to the security of the Mortmain Mountain headquarters. He probably shouldn’t have worried; Violet merely nods, and if she has concerns, she keeps them to herself. 

Jacques turns to face forward again, and this time Lemony does look over at him. He shakes his head slightly in response, warning him:  _ don’t _ . They all have plenty of time to worry, and plenty of things to worry about. Jacques wants to give the children as much time as possible to feel safe without thinking of the future. Lemony obeys, staying silent, and the taxi drives on through the Hinterlands towards the carnival. 


	3. The Carnival

“Children,” Olivia says, only barely managing to keep her voice from quavering. “I’m so  _ happy _ to have found you.” Violet and Klaus look at each other for a moment before smiling. She can tell they’re hesitant, but in their situation, they’d be silly not to be. 

“We’re very happy you’ve found us, too,” Violet says politely. Klaus nods in agreement, and Sunny says something that’s not an actual word but which probably means ‘I agree as well’. “But we have to get out of here,” the eldest Baudelaire continues, only a hint of worry entering her voice. 

“I was just thinking the same thing,” Olivia says, trying to make her voice as reassuring as she can manage. She doesn’t know how she feels about her plan to get them out of here, but she hopes she’ll have plenty of time to parse through her emotions later. “Baudelaires,” she says, smiling as much as she can to soften her serious tone. “I don’t have a car. The previous Madame Lulu took Jacques’ taxi when she left,” she explains softly, and if the children notice her hesitation on Jacques’ name, they’re too polite to mention it. “Now, I know theft is morally wrong, but if it’s to keep the three of you safe, I think it might balance out.”

She barely finishes the sentence before Klaus asks, “We’re going to steal Count Olaf’s car?” He doesn’t sound nearly as hesitant as she’d expected, but Olivia doesn’t waste time being surprised. The Baudelaires are good, morally sound children; she knows they wouldn’t be enthusiastic about stealing a car in less dire circumstances. 

“We are,” she confirms, and feels a thrill slip down her spine. It’s the same thrill she felt right before she climbed an apartment building all the way to the penthouse and entered a tavern holding a whip she’d only just learned how to use. She shouldn’t be excited, with so much at stake and about to commit a very serious crime, but she can’t help it. 

They’re getting out of here tonight. She knows she’s doing the right thing, but she just hopes-almost desperately, really-that Jacques would be proud of her even if she had stolen the car keys that first night when Olaf was too drunk to notice, unsure what she planned to do with them. Now she understands. Protecting the Baudelaires is her responsibility, hers and hers alone now that so many adults and volunteers alike have failed them, and she will  _ not _ let them down.


	4. The Carnival, but sadder

Caligari Carnival is nothing but ashes. There’s barely anything to mark that a carnival ever stood here, since most of it was made of flammable materials like cloth and wood, but Lemony knows he’s in the right place. He doesn’t remember much of Kit’s description; it had been too horrible, too much on top of losing Jacques, but he can imagine. 

It’s somehow simultaneously worse and yet less horrible than the destruction of the Baudelaire mansion; destruction so complete it’s impossible to reconstruct what once stood here, and painful to imagine it. Lemony doesn’t know why he’s here. Out of a sense of duty, probably, is what he’d say if asked. He’s not sure if it would be true. 

He picks his way through the rubble, blackened ash that might have been a tent or a food stand. The metal railing from the rollercoaster survived, marking an oddly circular barrier around the destruction. The crudely dug lion pit survived too, of course. He doesn’t know, doesn’t  _ want _ to know, the fate of the lions themselves. If there’s white flashes of bone in the pit itself, he doesn’t look at them. 

Later, alone in his taxi on the way back to the city, or in the city itself, whatever motel room he’s checked himself anonymously into this week, he knows that the throbbing ache in his chest will become unbearable. Already he can feel the pain growing, spreading as if carried by each heartbeat through his bloodstream. Probably he shouldn’t have come here. Probably Jacques wouldn’t have wanted him to. 

But Jacques is gone, and Lemony wouldn’t have listened regardless. He’d never met Olivia Caliban, but standing at the edge of the lion pit, looking down at the sad heap of ashes and he doesn’t want to know what else, Lemony wants to know her so badly it physically hurts.  _ If I’d just if I hadn’t if I’d only- _ Kit’s voice, half hysterical with the grief she’d only let out in front of him, rising into his mind as if she’s here now, in front of him, crouched amongst the ashes. Lemony wishes he knew how to let his grief out like that, messy and loud, instead of resigning himself to long months of research, documenting everything he can find about the subjects he desperately wants to avoid. 

He turns from the pit after a long silence, hands in his pockets. He hopes she hadn’t suffered. He hopes she’s with Jacques now. He wants desperately to hear his brother’s voice again, that soft swelling warmth of  _ I have a new recruit with me now, I think she likes me. She’s a librarian, from Prufrock. I let her drive the taxi. I think she might be- I hope she’s- I’m in love with her. _ Sometimes, when he thinks about it hard enough, he can hear it in Jacques’ voice, still. 

But today there is only silence. 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm snicketscope on tumblr if anyone's interested in seeing more of my nonsense


End file.
